Life is Full of Surprises
by Zanderluv121
Summary: This is a rewrite of 'A New Dawn! Sorry for the mix up, everybody. Summary: Emma Swan broke the curse and is now praying her life will begin to feel normal again, but in a town called Storybrooke, Maine, nothing is what it seems.
1. Saying Hello

_A/N: Hello, all! I just wanted to inform you that I was loving 'A New Dawn', so I wanted to rewrite it. I hope I'm not confusing you, but please disregard the chapters I posted of 'A New Dawn'. Thank you! -Zanderluv121_

* * *

When your seventeen years old, living in a town called Storybrooke, Maine, where fairytale characters really exist, things can get a little... magical. Magical as in spells and potions being concocted or people transforming into another person. Hard to believe, right? But it happens, all in this little town located in Maine. You never know what's going to happen, you never expect it.

Seeing magical things isn't as bad as what I was facing today. I've been dreading this day since the school bell rang last year, allowing us to leave school and face our summer vacation, but now that summer's over, the day I never wanted to come, came- Senior year of high school. This is the start of the rest of your life, it prepares us for what's to come, what you want to do with your life, how to handle yourself. But, I didn't want to think about that. Who the hell knows what I want to do with my life?

Yet, here, I am, waiting in the long line of cars to enter the school's parking lot, with music blasting in the Bug. My yellow car stuck out from all the other cars, painted black or white or gray to blend in with everyone. I was different. Everyone knew that. I was the Savior, while the kids in the black, white, and gray cars were normal- not really normal since they were fairytale characters, but normal in an unnormal way. All last year, they got to sit back being their cursed selves, waiting for me to break the curse. And I did. Now everyone knows who they are and what happened.

I shifted my car into park and slumped against the leather seat, knowing that if I looked out of the windshield, kids would be gawking at me and whispering that _she_ was the one that broke the curse. From the corner of my eye I spotted a gray sedan pull into an open spot in the far side of the lot, slamming shut the door as he grabbed his backpack and made his way towards me. Neal. I smiled and scooped up my own backpack, leaning against the door to my Bug as Neal slowly walked to where I was.

"Hey, babe." He said in his deep, angelic voice, wrapping his arm around me. "You ready for senior year?" Neal and I made our way out of the parking lot, the kids moving aside to let us through.

I pressed an emotionless expression as I passed the students, now whispering into their friends' ears. Near the beginning of the line, which surprised me a lot, my friends, Kat, Amanda, Lola, Josh, and Christian were waiting for us to pass, though I expected them to be walking with us and not praising me for breaking the curse. "As ready as I'll every be." I mumbled back to Neal, burying myself closer into his brown leather jacket.

* * *

The staff of the Storybrooke school's decided that in order for the students and children of the town to feel like everything is back to normal like it was before, giving them an education would help. But, it wasn't; everything still felt off when I was walking down the long corridors to my locker. Maybe I'm paranoid or maybe I'm the kind of person that despises attention, but the stares of every teacher, every student, drilled holes into the back of my shirt. School was diffidently not the place where things feel normal.

When I reached my locker, the one located next to Neal's, I felt the presence of five people leaning against the metal door, waiting for me to talk to them. The attention was getting to me. I slammed my locker shut, startling Neal, and turned to the five people- Kat, Lola, Amanda, Josh, and Christian. "What?" I snapped.

Josh was the first to speak, his eyebrows crinkling together, "Is it true?" The rest of my friends stared at me for an answer.

"Is what true?" I asked, shoving my backpack over my shoulder.

"The rumors," Kat pipped in, suddenly fearful. "about Regina trying to kill you." That grabbed Neal's attention.

"Regina's after Emma?" Neal asked, stepping in front of me and blocking my view from my friends. "Why would she be?"

Lola snorted and rolled her eyes, "Because Emma broke the curse, duh." Kat and Amanda looked down to the ground as if they heard the news someone they loved had died, while Christian and Josh nodded forcefully.

Fear grew in Neal's eyes as he turned to look at me and then back at our friends. "If there are rumors going around about it, how come I haven't heard them?"

"Maybe because everyone's afraid of you." Amanda barked, loosing her cool. Christian and Josh glared at her in disappointment, as Lola and Kat remained looking down at the floor.

I stepped in front of Neal and narrowed my eyes at Amanda. "Why would people be scared of Neal? He didn't do anything wrong." No one should be afraid of Neal. He is the most kind-hearted, romantic, funny, intelligent guy I have ever met, and without him, I would be lost.

"People think that because Neal is Gold's son, he has dark magic and powers that can harm people." Christian spoke up, giving an apologetic smile to me and an affirmative nod towards Neal. "No one trusts Gold... or Neal now."

"So people are judging him because of his _father_?" I confirmed with a laugh. "That's the stupidest thing I have ever heard!" My friends crossed their arms and gave me a death stare.

"Look, if it weren't for you breaking the curse, we wouldn't be in this mess!" Amanda snarled, blaming me for bringing light back into the dark town. The anger rising up in Amanda shocked me. Why would someone loyal to me and Neal before the curse broke turn her back on us now?

My mouth dropped open, my feet moved themselves to where she was standing, letting me tower over her. "You really want to blame me for bringing happy endings back to the Goddamn town?! I was _supposed_ to save you all and now you're pointing fingers at _me_?" Neal grabbed my arm and started to pull me away from Amanda. "Some friend you are." I grumbled under my breath.

"We need to focus on the matter at hand, guys!" Kat stated logically, stepping in front of Amanda and her laser beam eyeballs. "Is Regina coming for Emma?"

Neal puffed out his chest and nodded towards Josh and Christian. "We don't know for sure yet, but if she does, we'll protect her."

* * *

I can always count on Neal to make a good situation come out of a bad one. By the end of the day, Neal and I managed to receive a single detention for disrupting Mrs. Grad's English class. Surprisingly, her glass eyeball on the right side and her partly blind eye on the left side still spotted Neal and I throwing spit balls through the air. So, as our first day of senior year came to a close, our afternoon was spent in detention.

"There will be no talking, no laughing, no singing, no humming, no eating, and no drinking during detention today. If I come back to see you doing those things you will be seeing me tomorrow at lunch and after school for scraping gum off the desks and erasing foul words from the textbooks." Mr. Melon yelled, spit spraying everywhere. He turned to leave the room with a glance over her shoulder, the door slamming shut behind him.

Neal smiled mysteriously and raised his eyebrows, knowing that I knew exactly what he was thinking. I gave a smirk back and moved the chair from my desk over to him. He wasted no time, instead he pulled me up on his desk and grabbed my waist as I lifted his chin up to my face. Our lips touched, sending electricity down my spine. All was quiet, with only the sound of our short, staggered breathing filling our ears. Our mouths moved up and down, while Neal's hand moved to grip my neck. I smiled, despite our lips pressing together. And then, just as we thought no one was going to bother us, the door opened and Mr. Melon came in again.

* * *

_Hoped you liked it! _


	2. The Little Blue Box

What gave Mr. Melon the right to give Neal and I _another_ detention tomorrow just because we were making out in detention today? And, adding to even more anger that I had bottled up inside me, Amanda hates me, people are afraid to go near my boyfriend, Regina might be looking to kill me, and I won't be hearing the end of the detention scheme from my parents. Great, just great.

I figured since it was three-thirty no one would be home when I got out of school, but I unfortunately wasn't that lucky. As I dropped my keys onto the table near the door, I let out a high-pitched scream, hoping to end my frustration.

And then, making me jump out of my skull, Mary Margaret strolled out of her room with a laundry basket propped under her arm. "From the looks of it your day went well."

"I- uh," I stammered, still in shock that someone heard me scream that loud, that piercing, that embarrassing.

Mary Margaret sent an amused smile at me and sat down at the couch to fold the laundry. She picked up a pair of David's jeans, neatly folded them and lint rolled the fabric. "What happened?" My mother asked me, picking up my black bra and holding it up for me to see.

"Do you really need to stare at my _bra_?" I asked, mystified. My stomach growled loudly, making me press my hand over my stomach in hopes of quieting it. I grabbed a granola bar out of the cabinet and slumped down on the couch next to her.

"Emma, I'm your mother." Snow giggled, still holding it in front of her face.

I whipped it out of her hands and shoved it into the laundry basket again. "It's still weird, _mom_," I joked. "I don't want you touching my clothes."

"If you'd like to fold the laundry from now on, be my guest. I'd be more than happy for you to take it off my hands since you don't do anything else around the house." Mary Margaret replied, her tone now serious.

"No thanks..." I answered, leaning against the fabric and closing my eyes. I wanted nothing more than to sleep, but I still had Goddamn homework to do. Who gives homework on the first day of school? Apparently my teachers do.

Mary Margaret watched me, my eyes still closed, and asked, "So, how was your first day of _senior_ year?"

I groaned. This was not what I wanted to talk about, but her tone was so curious, so desperate to connect with me, that I did tell her how my day was. "If you must know, senior year isn't as picture perfect as movies make it out to be. Amanda hates me, people are afraid of Neal because of his dad, there are rumors going around that Regina's out to get me, my stupid English teacher gave me and Neal detention, Mr. Melon thought it was a brilliant idea to give me and Neal another detention tomorrow just because he caught us making out in class... A day in the life with Emma Swan is never calm and peaceful."

"Wait, back up." Snow said, pausing with a pair of socks in her hand. "Did you say that Regina's out to get you?" My mother stood over me, making my eyes pop open. Her face was a mixture of anger and fear, while mine was sleepy and groggy.

"That's what people say, but you really never know with rumors. One person could be saying that she's out to get me, while another could have said that she was throwing me a party." I replied, shutting my eyes and feeling a headache teeter around in my forehead.

Mary Margaret wrinkled her eyebrows in confusion and crossed her arms. "Regina's not one for parties." I shrugged and rubbed my temples, the pain growing stronger. "Emma, honey, are you feeling okay? You look kind of sick all of a sudden." She pressed the back of her hand against my forehead, checking my temperature. "Wow, your burning up! Why don't you go upstairs and get some sleep, maybe you'll feel better later."

But I didn't.

* * *

I woke up at seven o'clock that night with a sensation like my stomach did fifty back flips in one minute. My throat throbbed, almost as though I hadn't eaten or drank anything in my entire life. And then, faster than I thought was possible for me to run, I found myself in the bathroom, clutching the toilet for dear life and throwing up.

I stayed bending over the toilet for a half an hour before Mary Margaret found me, looking green in the face. "Oh, my God!" She panicked, rummaging around the bathroom for a wet towel and elastic as I threw up helplessly. "How long have you been like this?" My mother asked, whipping my hair up into a top-knot bun.

"A while," I choked, coughing uncontrollably while my stomach swirled in different directions. The life felt like it had been sucked out of me, until I bent over again and opened my mouth. "This is so gross." I stammered.

Snow rubbed my back reassuringly and thought about how I could have had a sudden change in my body. Was it something I ate? But then she reached under the cabinet and pulled out a small blue box with wording I didn't catch as I bent over again. "Emma, did you and Neal-," She didn't need to finish, for I stopped my nausea and stared at her wide-eyed and nervous.

"It was just once!" I stammered, holding up my hands and wiping my mouth.

She shoved the box in front of my face, the words clear as night- _Pregnancy tests. _"Did you get your-," Mary Margaret started to ask, but I cut her off.

"No..." I answered quickly, looking at the box.

My mother stared at me intently, and then rested her gaze upon the little blue box. "Emma, you might want to check to see if your pregnant."

* * *

_BOOM! Did you see that coming?! Send me your thoughts. _


	3. I'm Absolutly Positive

_Hello, dearies! Well, it's raining cats and dogs, preventing me from going in my pool. But, lucky for you guys, you get an update! Enjoy reading it and send me your thoughts. :) _

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Despite that fact that I've been throwing up for the last hour and took the dreaded pregnancy test, I grabbed my backpack, shoved on my jeans and boots, and ran out the door with my parents calling after me. I didn't hear them or see them open the door after me, all that was in my mind was the green symbol that appeared on the test I took. Positive. I was pregnant.

I ran down the sidewalk towards Neal's house, not bothering to take my car. My legs carried me fast, almost as fast as they did to the bathroom an hour earlier. It felt like I was treading water, that I would end up drowning if I didn't make it to Neal's house in the next two seconds. But then I was there, panting and bending down thanks to a cramp. I felt like I was going to throw up again, my breathing jagged and sparse while I got that _feeling_ of nausea welling up inside me.

The door burst open, making me lift my head from my knees. "Emma?" Neal questioned, fear in his voice as he bent down next to me. "What happened to you? You look horrible." Well, that really lifted my spirits.

"I need to talk- oh, God, I think I'm gonna be sick." I stammered, clutching my stomach as if it would do any good. The rain poured down, drenching Neal and me until we were left shivering on the steps of his house.

"Em, you need to come inside. We'll talk there," Neal cooed, taking my hands and helping me up off the ground. We entered his warm and inviting house, the smell of something delicious wafting up my nose.

Mr. Gold entered the room, drying his hands on a dishtowel. "Miss. Swan, how lovely to see you in such a breathtaking state." I glared at him, and as much as I wanted to lunge and give him a piece of my mind, someone came out of the kitchen with a disproving shake of the head at Neal's father.

She was beautiful, her blue eyes sparkling so bright and her brown hair pulled into a side fishtail braid. "Oh, Rumple, that's no way to talk to Neal's lovely girlfriend." The woman turned to me and held back a gasp. Did I really look _that_ bad? "Emma, right?" She asked me kindly.

"Yeah," I replied, trying to look over her shoulder and into the glass separator to see my reflection. When I finally was able to see it, I bit my lip in horror. My cheeks, soaked with tears, had mascara that I forgot to wipe off running down, my hair was flopping around in my sloppy bun, my skin was paler than usual, almost as though you could see the veins popping out of it, and my clothes were absorbed in water.

The woman handed me a tissue and said, "I'm Belle," Realization sunk into my brain; Belle from _Beauty and the Beast_. The way her kind tone softened Mr. Gold's angry face, her angelic voice, her shining blue eyes, her dark hair... It all made sence. Did that mean Mr. Gold was also the Beast? "Would you like to stay for dinner tonight, Emma?"

"Thanks, but my parents don't know where I am and I should probably get back. I just have to tell Neal something first..." I said, watching as Neal turned to me and wrinkled his eyebrows together. "In privacy." He jumped up, as if electrocuted, and led me up the stairs to his room. I closed the door behind me and turned the lock.

"So, what's going on, Em? Your kinda scaring me." Neal said over his shoulder, as he pushed dirty clothes off his bed and started to neatly fold his sheets. He patted the spot next to him for me to sit down.

I wanted to stall, so I asked a question that _really_ had been bugging me. "I didn't know your dad had a... girlfriend?"

Neal smiled down at the sheets and pulled me into his lap. I felt his scruffy thumb rub my cheek and his eyes stare intently at me. He knew I was trying to avoid telling him what I came here for. "It's a really long story and you probably won't want to hear it." I nodded and ran a hand through his messy brown hair, letting him hold me in his arms. "All right, you stalled enough, just tell me why you came here at eight o'clock lookin' like a sea hag."

"I've looked worse," I told him with a small laugh, but then the burden grew too much to hold, so I blurted it out, "Neal, I'm pregnant." He dropped his hand and stared at me closer, his eyes bulging out of their sockets while his mouth hung open. Silence enveloped us, trapping us under something we couldn't escape from. He swallowed thickly, now looking down at the floor.

After a few more minutes of us coming to a consensus that _this_ was reality, he choked out, "I'm going to be a father?"

"Neal, I'm so sorry-," I started to say, but Neal cut me off.

He held me tighter in his arms, pressing my chin against his shoulder. "You have nothing to be sorry for, Emma." I felt his right hand grip my waist, while I felt his left hand hold my neck. "There's nothing we can do to change what happened. We're going to be parents whether we like it or not." I lost myself for a minute, my tears pouring out of my eyes and onto his muscle shirt. "And I'll be with you every step of the way whether _you_ like it or not. We're going to be amazing parents for this kid- you and I."

* * *

_TBC..._


	4. Tallahassee

I sat bunched up in Neal's arms for almost three hours, not saying anything, just letting his deep breath lull me away from the fact that we're going to be parents in nine months. The rain, bouncing off the gutters surrounding Neal's house, poured down, not stopping for anyone. In the three hours of rocking back and forth in my boyfriend's arms, I let a steady drip of tears inch their way from my eyes, almost like the rain. I was still cold from running to Neal's house earlier, a dog-bark like cough showing how the freezing, wet weather was getting to me.

"We should probably get you home." Neal whispered into my ear as my eyes were about to flutter close out of exhaustion. "Your parents are probably flipping out." I groaned as he got up, my body still laying limply in his arms. He walked over to his bedroom door, undid the lock, and carried me downstairs. On his way out, Belle looked up from the couch with a curious expression, and Neal bent lower to show that I was asleep in his arms. She gave a quick nod and shooed Neal away, back into the bone-chilling rain.

As the car pulled down the street away from Mr. Gold's house, I opened my eyes reluctantly, the bumps from the road waking me up. I let out another cough and sneezed into my elbow, Neal cringing as he drove. "Where are we?" I mumbled, after my coughing fit was over.

"In my car. I'm bringing you home since you look pretty beat." Neal replied with a smile, glancing over at me as I played with the ragged ends of my sweatshirt. "Like a sea hag... times ten." He added, laughing.

I rolled my eyes but couldn't help the smile that was brewing on my face. "Can I ask you something, Neal?" I grew serious, my tone affirmative, making his laughing stop and his smile crease into a frown.

"Anything," He replied, turning to me as we pulled the car in front of the apartment.

"How are we gonna raise this... this kid when we're supposed to be in college?" I questioned, staring straight ahead, my eyes clouding with worry. "I want our child to have it's best chance, but I want us to get an education-,"

Neal used his finger to turn my chin towards his, our eyes locking in place, not blinking. "If you want to raise the kid -our kid- we'll take a few years outta school. It'll just be me and you, as parents, doing a hell of a good job teaching our child right from wrong. Whatever you wanna do, Em, I'm going to be next to you, supporting you, not letting you go through everything alone." I nodded, still not taking my eyes away from his. He was silent, the gears in his brain turning, thinking. "Maybe we should get our own place. I think- I think it's time, don't you?"

"You mean, together?" I wondered, incredulously.

He wrinkled his eyebrows together, "You wanna?"

"Like where? Neverland?" I asked, throwing up my arms and coming closer to Neal's face.

Neal paused and exclaimed, "I'm serious. We can do this!"

I sighed and tore my eyes away from his. "Where?"

He patted my arm and grabbed my backpack, searching through it quickly, his hands finally laying upon my history textbook. Neal flipped to the back of the book and held up a map of the United States. "I'll tell you where," He mused, while I snorted. "Close your eyes and point; whatever spot you pick, that's our home." I did as he said and closed my eyes, smiling under my breath, while my finger rested upon a small red dot.

When I opened my eyes, I found the spot I picked. "Tallahassee?"

"Tallahassee," He breathed, looking at the city I placed my finger upon. Neal met my gaze and smiled.

"Is it near a beach?" I asked, my smiled broadening.

Neal laughed and said, "Yes, it's Florida, everything's near a beach!" I wrapped my arms around his neck and paused, staring into his eyes again.

"Tallahassee it is," I stated, leaning into him.

He smiled, his eyes crinkling, as he confirmed, "Tallahassee it is!"

Neal and I locked our eyes, mine green, his brown. "Are you sure? I mean, is this what you really want?" I questioned slowly.

"What I really want is you." Neal responded, leaving no room for me to protest. Those six words sparked so much love in me, love I thought I'd never find. He _wanted_ me, not some other girl, me. He closed his eyes and leaned in, our lips touching each others. I brought my hand up to his upper neck, digging my fingers through his hair while he grabbed my back, our kiss bringing electricity and chills down my spine.

* * *

I entered my apartment fifteen minutes later, coughing and clearing my throat of flem. I never thought a simple rain storm, me running in it, and the freezing cold weather would trigger a cough that sounded like a dying dog or my throat to be hoarse. As I grew accustomed to the dark living room of the apartment, the lights switched on, making me blink over and over again.

There she stood, with her arms crossed and an expression that told me I was dead. "_Where have you been?_" Mary Margaret asked quickly, walking over to me and observing my damp clothes.

"At Neal's," I replied, trying to nudge my way out of the tiny corner I was trapped in. "I had to tell him... that I was pregnant." Mary Margaret stopped, raised her gaze towards me and opened her mouth wide enough to kill any bugs zooming by in our apartment.

"So, you _are_ pregnant?" She confirmed, stepping back.

I let out a cough and shivered, "Yeah." My mother's expression softened, like when Belle's angelic voice calmed Mr. Gold down and eased his old features. "But Neal and I are okay with it. We're going to raise the kid and be parents." I said confidently.

"Wow... I never thought I'd hear you convinced and happy about this." Mary Margaret replied, a twinkle in her eye.

Shrugging, I backed up towards the staircase. "Well, I am. And, I'd love to stay and chat, but I have homework to do and water in my shoes." I turned to go up the stairs when I heard Mary Margaret say something I would have loved to record.

"I'm proud of you, Emma." Before I could turn around, Mary Margaret strolled out of the room, leaving me shocked on the bottom of the staircase.

* * *

_Some of the dialogue, as you probably have figured out, was said by Emma and Neal in episode 6 of season two (Tallahassee). I love the writers; they make everything sound so romantic. _


	5. Secrets Are Meant For Family

_I feel like I haven't updated this story in a while, but it's only been a few days. Countdown for Season 3 of Once Upon a Time- Two months and one day!_

* * *

A stream of sunlight filled my room as I opened my eyes. Normally, when I woke up on school mornings, the sunlight would barely be visible over the thick extent of white, puffy clouds. And thanks to David's voice acting as an alarm clock, I would be up just as the sunrays hit the shadow of my bedroom curtains, but today was different. It _felt_ different.

My head was still foggy from the lack of sleep I got since I spent most of my night trying to decipher Calculus problems, write a single paragraph essay about _'To Kill a Mocking Bird'_, the book we had to read over the summer vacation, and answer twenty chemistry questions that we supposedly knew from last year, so when I turned to read the numbers blinking on my phone, they swirled around and around, not letting me read them. I rubbed my eyes, grabbed my glasses, and looked back at my phone. The numbers blinked twelve 'o clock in the afternoon.

I jumped out of bed, but the sudden pound of a never-ending headache held me back, making me cringe my teeth and grip the doorknob tightly. When the pain lessened, I grabbed some clothes from my dresser and stumbled into the bathroom, closing the door with a loud _SLAM _behind me. I stared into the mirror hanging above the sink vanity, trying to tell myself that who I saw wasn't me. I looked horrible, not worse than yesterday night, but still unappealing.

The green mass of my eyes, for one, was clouded with dark circles that would soon be invisible once I put concealer over them. I tried blinking a few times to see if the circles was just something of my imagination, but I was wrong; they were really there. My blonde hair, sticking up from all angles, was matted and falling apart from the bun I managed to wrap it in last night, while my skin looked paler than usual. I backed up, just enough so I could see my whole body in the little bathroom mirror, and gasped. As I lifted up my black tank top, I placed my hand on my stomach. It usually was a flat surface, but now a little bump stuck out, making my breath catch into my chest. "There's really a kid in there..." I whispered to myself.

* * *

After I took a hot, fifteen minute-long shower, I trailed down the metal stairs and found myself in the kitchen, raiding the refrigerator. My appetite in the morning usually wasn't this huge, but then I figured that the kid inside my stomach needed food to grow. I was chugging down a carton of milk when someones soft footsteps approached me with an amused grin. "Someone's hungry," David observed, watching as I finished off the creamy, thick goodness.

I bent over to look into the fridge and took out a bowl of fruit. "I'm _frickin' starving_," I dug into the drawers next to the fridge and pulled out a fork, sticking it into the juicy watermelon.

"I can see that," He laughed, closing the drawer I opened and leaning against it. "Didn't you eat last night at Neal's house? No, wait, I saw you scarfing down a bag of pretzels at one in the morning while you were doing you homework. By the way, what time did you end up going to sleep?"

My mouth polished off the watermelon as I pulled out an apple, biting into it seconds later. "Around two thirty- three o'clock," I replied, raising my eyebrows at him. "Why do you care?"

"'Cause someone like you needs to get nine hours of sleep or else they get... bitchy," David remarked, still smirking as I threw the core of my apple into the trash. "Really bitchy, I might add."

"Well, you can prepare yourself for the bitch because I only got eight hours of sleep," I stated, running my fingers through my hair as I pulled it back into a neat ponytail.

David craned his neck back, looking up at the ceiling. "Oh, great," He mumbled, than looked at the clock above the stove. "You know your missing school, right?" His blue eyes locked with my green eyes, his twinkling while mine were fierce.

"Yeah," I answered, turning away from my father. "And your probably going to make me go in, am I right?" I felt a rush of wind blow past me, watching as David grabbed his car keys, shrugged on his coat, and threw me my leather jacket.

He opened the door for me and grinned. "Now, what kind of parent would I be if I didn't make my child go into school?" I grabbed my backpack and gave his shoulder a playful bump as I moved past him and into the hall.

"An awesome one," I muttered under my breath, feeling his hand on my shoulder guide me towards his old, beaten down pick up truck.

* * *

We drove in silence, the only sound that we both heard was of something rattling around in the bed of the truck. I didn't understand why David was making me go into school, other than the fact that he wanted to annoy me, because I only had an hour and forty-five minutes of classes left, and I already missed the most important classes. I had lunch, study hall, gym, and film studies left, which was the easiest and most boring classes that I was scheduled to have. I didn't mention the fact that my headache returned or how I felt weak, but I also didn't want to tell David that the reason I had the headache and felt weak was because I was pregnant. Did my father already know I was pregnant? Was he not talking about it to keep it at a minimum?

The truck pulled up to the front of the school, making me groan silently. "Have a good afternoon at school, Emma." David kidded, throwing a wink in his sentence. "I can pick you up at two if you want or is _Neal_ driving you home?"

"Actually, Neal and I were going to stop at the library, to search around for colleges and apartments for next year." I replied slowly, not knowing if I should tell David my plans about moving to Tallahassee with Neal. He seemed to deflated a little, for reasons involving college and apartments. "I know I haven't told you this, but Neal and I were planning to go out-of-state for college..." I blurted out, opening the door and dragging my backpack along with me. Why did I just say that?

David leaned over to look at me through the opened window. "Out of state where?" He asked, raising an eyebrow. "Emma-..."

"You know, we should really talk about this at home tonight. Like you said, I have to get to class." I started to interrupt, walking away from the roaring engine. David's eyes drilled holes into my leather jacket, making me feel uncomfortable with the situation I was in. Glancing over my shoulder, I yelled something that I regretted almost instantly, "And, David... I'm pregnant." I didn't know what made me tell him the secret I've been hiding, but I did, and it felt like a great burden was lifted off of me.

He froze, his hand on the steering wheel. "_WHAT?_" But before he could say another word, I ran off into the school, my blonde ponytail flapping around my back.


	6. Home is Where the Memeories Take Place

_This chapter sorta wrote itself. I hope you all enjoy it and please keep reviewing. Count down until Once Upon a Time Season 3: Only two months, everyone! _

* * *

"That one's nice," Neal observed, clicking to enlarge the pictures of a two bedroom, one bathroom apartment on one of the library's computers. "It's got everything we need." he added, scrolling towards the bottom of the page to check out the price it was selling for.

I immediately shook my head while my eyes bulged out of their sockets. "Nope, next one," The cost of the apartments we were locking at made my stomach have a sinking feeling, a feeling that told me Tallahassee might not be the best place to live with a budget like ours.

My boyfriend sighed and clicked back to the list of apartment possibilities. "Okay, how about this one? It's got one bedroom, one bathroom, and a small living room. The kid could always sleep in the living room."

"Maybe," I answered, placing a hand on my stomach and thinking to myself that my child is never going to sleep in a living room. It deserves a bedroom. Neal smiled down at my stomach and clicked on another apartment idea. "You know, I've always wanted a small hose. I might be better than living in an apartment with a newborn baby."

"And it costs a lot more money, Em," Neal huffed, reading the features of yet another two bedroom apartment. "I mean, with the money we both have combined, our budget is around five thousand dollars. That's not gonna get us anywhere. I mean, we could always take money out of our college accounts since we're not _going_ to college, but I'm not sure our parents will be too happy about that."

I gave a small kiss on Neal's cheek and pointed to the computer screen. "Just check for houses. Please, for me and the baby." I sang, batting my long eyelashes.

Neal groaned an exchanged another kiss back. "All right, for you and our child." he said, typing quickly in the search bar. I thought about what kind of house I could see my family living in, as Neal was typing away. I wanted a house with two bedrooms, two bathrooms, a kitchen, a dining room, a massive living room with high ceilings, and a patio with a pool. But I knew that I couldn't get all those things. "Check this one out." Neal said, breaking my train of thoughts.

As I read the description of the house, my smile grew. The home had a teal paint color with white shudders and a big, dark blue door. Bushes lined the front of the house and a walkway led up the house. Trees and flowers grew around the house, making it colorful and cheerful. The inside of the home had three bedrooms, two bathrooms, a living room with a fire-place, and a small kitchen. The outside had a closed in porch and a wooden deck, leading down to a big lawn. "It's perfect." I exclaimed.

"The seller's are asking one-hundred thirty thousand dollars for it." Neal stated, reading the screen carefully. "The house has been on the market for a while, so we could probably ask to lower the price."

"But it's still gonna be way over our price range." I mumbled, groaning and banging my head on the wooden desk that held the computer monitor. Why does reality have to crush my dreams? "We only have five thousand dollars combined and that leaves us with one-hundred twenty-five thousand dollars to save up."

Neal tapped on my shoulder and turned my chin towards his face. "Hey, Emma, listen to me," he whispered, his eyes glistening. "We'll buy the house if you really want it, but we need to tap into our college savings account. I can even try to talk my dad into negotiating with the real estate agent."

I gave a small smile in his direction. "You'd be willing to use your college money for me and our baby?"

"I'd be willing to do anything for you and our baby." Neal replied with a confident tone. He pressed the print button on the computer screen, hi-lighted the phone number to contact the real estate agent, and turned off the computer. "But you just gotta promise me that you'll talk to your parents and _ask_ them before you rob _your_ own college savings account."

"Of course," I responded to Neal, letting him walk me out of the library and down Main Street with our hands intertwined. The chilly September breeze blew around us, rustling the leaves on the ground that fell from the trees. As we neared my apartment, Neal grabbed my arm and held me back from going into my apartment. He looked at me expectantly. I smiled and kissed his lips, my hands interlocking with Neal's again. Our lips moved up and down, down and up.

Neal broke away from our kiss and said,"We gotta stop kissing in the middle of the street. You don't know who's watching us." I leaned back towards him and gave him another quick kiss.

"I know," I replied, turning away from him to climb up the stairs. "Call me later."

* * *

I threw down my keys on the table and slid out of my backpack, hanging it up on the coat rack. As I turned around to walk into the kitchen, I nearly had a heart-attack. "God, do you have to always have to scare me half to death?" I asked to my parents, who have been sitting at the dinner table with their mouths closed, not making a sound.

"We need to talk," Mary Margaret blurted out, tapping her fingers on the wooden table. I threw my head back and groaned as I walked towards the the pantry. My stomach, mostly the kid inside it, was hungry, and I couldn't ignore the feeling that I was going to throw up again if I didn't eat something soon. "About Neal, you... and you having a child." I stopped mid-air with a piece of pizza in my hand.

"Good, because I need to talk to you about Neal, me and my kid." I replied, grabbing a napkin from the holder and wiping my mouth clean of any pizza sauce. I took a seat across from David and Mary Margaret, eyeing each of them suspiciously.

Mary Margaret leaned into the table, as if telling me her deepest, darkest secret. "Look, I'm glad you told David you were pregnant, but he also mentioned something about you and Neal going out-of-state for college. I just wanted to talk to you about that."

Leaning back in my chair, I silently cursed myself for telling David my plans with Neal, but then again, I promised Neal I would tell my parents about next year and our financial situation. "What I told David earlier wasn't a total lie, but some of it was," I paused, watching as Mary Margaret and David's eyebrows popped up. "Next year I'm supposed to go to college, but... I'm not. I want to take a few years out of school to raise my kid. Neal and I even found a house in Tallahassee and-..."

"_Tallahassee_?" Mary Margaret squeaked.

I nodded. "Tallahassee. The only problem with Tallahassee is that the house we want is a lot of money. I mean, Neal and I only have five thousand dollars saved up together and I was wondering if I could take some money out of my college saving's account to pay for our house."

"And how much is this house?" David asked slowly, crossing his arms.

"One-hundred thirty thousand dollars," I replied quickly, raising my eyebrows at both of my parents. "So, can I please take some money out of my saving's account? Please,"

David looked over at Mary Margaret with question. They seemed to be talking to each other through their minds, which made me look back and forth between each of my parents, trying to see what they were talking about. "You can take _some_ money out, if you promise to go back to school once your child is old enough for day care." Mary Margaret reasoned.

I jumped out of my chair and looked down at them. "Seriously?!"

In unison, my parents answered, "Seriously." I whipped out my phone, ready to call Neal, but Mary Margaret pipped in, "Emma, before you go and call whomever, I just wanted to make sure that you and Neal are serious about... about being parents and owning a house and living together. It's not always happy and easy."

"I haven't been more serious about anything in my life other than this. Trust me, I'm ready." I said affirmatively. "We both are."

They looked at me intently, David not blinking, Mary Margaret blinking back tears. I stood, my hands pressed against the table to hear what they had to say, but my parents were silent. To them, I looked like their little girl, the girl they wished to have raised, but I felt like a woman, like I finally felt old enough to make my own decisions and live on my own. "We're impressed of you, Emma." David managed to say.

* * *

Later that night, Neal's caller I.D. flashed on my phone along with a picture of him smiling brightly. I dropped everything I was doing and raced to pick up my phone. "Hey, babe," Neal said gently, right as I clicked on the green 'answer' button.

"My parents said yes, Neal. I can take money out of my college savings account!" I said, wasting no time to tell him the great news. On the other end of the receiver I heard Neal shout happily, probably raising his fist in the air.

Neal cleared his throat and said, "And my dad was able to lower the price of One-hundred thousand. Did I ever tell you how much I love that he's an awesome man when it comes to deals?"

"Oh, good Lord, is this really happening?!" I stammered into the phone, flopping down on my bed.

"Yeah, Em, it is," Neal replied with a smile.

I looked to my side at the pile of homework I still had to do and said into the phone, "Neal, I gotta go finish all the crap our teacher's assigned us to do tonight."

Neal grumbled choice words under his breath in frustration. "Damn, I have to too. But, hey, I called the Storybrooke doctor's office and scheduled an appointment for you on Friday afternoon at two-thirty. I'm going with you because once we leave the doctor's office, we can get the money outta the bank,"

"Great," I replied unenthusiastically. "See you tomorrow, babe."


	7. A Camera, A Check, and A Chat

The rest of the week passed by in a haze with an oral report about the major conflict in '_To Kill A Mockingbird'_, three lectures about the history taken place all those years ago in England, and a few pop quizzes thrown into the mix for good measure. And on this Friday, the air buzzing with excitement and anticipation for the prized weekend, Mrs. Bronk, my history teacher, decided to give us yet another lecture about British culture and facts about the Royal family.

She rambled on and on, ignoring the curses muttered under people's breath and the inwardly groans made by half the class that was asleep. Neal glanced over his shoulder and gave me a wink. I held up my hands to signal that we only had ten more minutes of class left, making my boyfriend smile contently. "And before your dismissed," Mrs. Bronk deadpanned, finishing her fascinating lecture, "I'd like you all to write a five-page report on what you just learned. It will be due on Monday." she added, receiving open-mouthed stares from each and every one of her students.

The shrill bell rang and Mrs. Bronk shooed us out the door of her classroom with an evil smile. "Can you believe her?" Neal grimaced, throwing his backpack over his shoulder. "I mean who does she think she is?"

"Uh, our teacher." I replied with a snort, the stares of the lower classmen following us down the hallway. Neal wrapped his arm around me and led me towards the Bug. From afar, I spotted Kat and Josh, watching us intently. "I'll be right back." I told Neal warily. I ran towards my friends in a slow jog, being careful not to get run over by the passing cars, though no one would want to mush the beloved Savior.

Kat smiled and waved as I stopped in front of her. "Hey, Emma! What's up?" Josh looked over my shoulder at Neal, giving him a grave stare as if to say something regarding football like old times.

"Look, I need you two to come over tonight. Neal and I have something to tell you." I said, without giving Josh a second to say 'hi' in his usual cheery way. They both looked at me questioningly and nodded. "Be at my house at eight." I ran back towards Neal and kissed his cheek.

My boyfriend threw my backpack into the back seat and adding his to the pile, Neal opened the passenger side door for me, insisting that he should drive to the doctor's office. I handed him the car keys reluctantly. "What'd you tell Kat and Josh?" Neal asked, starting the engine and pulling out of the parking lot.

"They're coming over tonight and we're telling them that I'm having a baby." I replied, leaving no room to argue, though Neal knew better than to reply with a single word. He looked over at me when we were at a red light and wrinkled his eyebrows as if to say 'why?'. "Kat and Josh are our closest friends and they should be able to know that they're going to be Godparents."

"You've already decided on Godparents?" Neal asked with a smirk. I nodded and let him continue. "All right, fine. Now which way to the doctor's office?" His tone, as enthusiastic as can be, masked my nervousness of going to the dreaded doctor's, and yet, I couldn't help smiling.

Leaning my head against the leather seat, I said, "Take a right." He did as he was told, like most days, and drove towards the white-painted building, while I braced myself for what was to come.

* * *

It seems as though Neal's excitement disintegrated into thin air and was replaced with regret. As we sat in the waiting room of the doctor's office, Neal was being used as a human jungle gym, kids of all ages attaching themselves onto his legs. I sneaked a few side-long grins to Neal as I filled out the 'New Patient Requirement' sheet. To much of Neal's relief, the doctor, a tall woman with almond colored skin, called us in.

"Good afternoon!" The doctor said happily, leading us down colorfully painted hallways and past informational signs. Neal gripped my hand tighter as our doctor opened a door for us. "I'm Dr. Law," She extended her hand for Neal to shake, but I shook it instead of Neal. My boyfriend's inability to move his hands occurred to me that he wasn't ready for what he was about to see. "So, you must be Emma Swan, the girl who broke the curse. I've heard a lot about you." She smiled at me.

I nodded and returned a weak smile. "Uh, yeah, and this is my boyfriend, Neal Cassidy." Neal's hand tensed upon hearing his own name being spoken, making my fingers bleed red with tension.

Dr. Law motioned for me to take a seat on the padded table marked with sanitary paper and began rushing around the room. "Now, today we'll be seeing your child for the first time, so we'll be doing an ultrasound." She informed, grabbing a tube filled with, what seems to be, white goop, pushing a chair over to Neal, and pulling a machine out of a locked closet. "Emma, can you lift up your shirt so I can spread this," She held up the tube of white goop. "over your stomach?" I did as I was told and lifted my shirt up, Neal grinning once seeing the small baby bump. Dr. Law tugged on gloves and spread the white goo over my stomach, then she plugged in the roll away machine to a wall outlet and flipped a television screen on.

"What is that?" Neal asked, nodding towards the goo sitting all over my stomach, as his eyes were fixated on the machine and its popped out television screen. I felt Neal grab my hand again, while his knee bounced up and down in his chair.

"This gel allows the camera to see inside Emma's stomach," Dr. Law replied, holding up a glorified camera. "The camera then shows us how your child is doing by projecting it onto this screen." She patted the television screen thoughtfully.

I bit my lip, hard enough so I could feel a drop of blood soak into my lips. "So, its translucent and it can see inside my stomach?" I asked logically, earning a nod from Dr. Law. "That's so cool."

Our doctor fiddled with the camera and smiled at me. "Yes, it is indeed." The cold lens of the camera pressed against my skin, making me grimace and squeeze Neal's hand tighter, now breaking his fingers. "See that little blob on the screen?" Outlining the fuzzy circle surrounded by a black color with her finger, she added, "That there is your baby. Let's see, your about a month along and it's still too soon to know if it's a boy or girl or when the due date is. But, I can give you a picture of the ultrasound if you'd like." My eyes, along with Neal's were staring intently at the screen, and then, the information registered into our brains with a shock. That was our child, right there on the screen, inside my stomach. I was giving it life. It wasn't just some crazy dream that I thought I have been living in; this is real and I wanted everything to do with this little baby.

"Could we have two pictures?" Neal asked quietly, still watching our breathtaking kid on the screen. I was nearly seconds away from breaking down, the tears overflowing in my eyes like a dam. Dr. Law cleared off the gel and smiled again at us.

"Of course. I'll be right back with them." She answered, exiting the room as soon as the gel was gone from my stomach and the machine was stored away in its rightful place.

Neal helped me up from the table and hugged me tightly. At that moment, I lost myself and let the tears I've been holding flowed down my cheeks and dampened Neal's gray shirt. I clutched my boyfriend's neck and let thoughts concerning our child appear in my head. What would it be like? Who would it look like? Will it be a boy or girl? Neal pulled back from our hug and thumbed away my tears. "These are tears of joy, right?" He asked.

I choked out a laugh and replied, "Yeah," He kissed my forehead slowly, closing his eyes. At that moment, Dr. Law opened the door again and walked into the room. She held the two photos and a blue folder in her hands.

"Neal, I think it might be best if you arrange Emma's next visits now so you don't forget later. I know you must be busy now that school started again." Dr. Law interjected, getting a nod out of Neal. He slowly moved from my side and towards the door, only to have Dr. Law stop him. "And, hey, congratulations." She happily gave Neal a one-armed hug and shut the door behind him.

I used the back of my hand to wipe away the remainder of my eyeliner and questioned, "How often do I have to come back?" Just being at the doctor's today and seeing my kid for the first time made me shake off my foolish fear of the doctor's office and beg to come back to see the inside of my growing stomach.

"Every few months. Patty, the receptionist, can give you all the details when you leave." Dr. Law answered, handing me the two pictures and rested her hands on the blue folder she had been holding. "Emma, I know this is very verbose now that you've seen your child, but are you really ready to do this? To be a mom?"

This question, like all the other's I received from Mary Margaret, got the same answer every time. "Yes," I said confidently, tucking the pictures into my backpack.

Dr. Law handed me the folder and informed, "This has everything you need to know about what to expect during your pregnancy. I would read it if I were you." I took it with a smile and walked towards the door to exit the room. "Congratulations, Emma." She smiled back, waving as I shut the door behind me.

I walked down the colorful hallways and saw Neal waiting for me, the car keys dangling from his fingers. I ran the rest of the way towards him and jumped into his arms, interlocking my legs around his waist. He spun me around the room, getting bewildered looks from the waiting patients in the office. "Next stop, bank."

* * *

"So, Miss. Swan, you have fifty thousand dollars saved up in your college saving's account and three hundred dollars in your regular bank account," Mr. Jacques, the bank owner, grumbled under his breath. "And Mr. Cassidy, you have two-hundred thousand dollars in your college saving's account and five hundred twenty dollars saved in your back account."

Neal folded his hands politely in front of him and said, "See, Mr. Jacques, sir, I need to take all of that money out of the bank. My girlfriend and I are buying a home and the offer needs to be put in next month and we're expecting our first child so we need the money to buy baby clothes and things," My boyfriend proudly flashed his picture of the ultrasound in front of the bank owner's face.

Mr. Jacques looked irritated, like he would rather be anywhere else than a bank on this cold, September day. Sighing, he replied, "I need proper identification of each of you and I must see your driver's licence to confirm that you are, indeed, eighteen years of age. Those are the rules for taking out all of your money from your accounts."

In a flash of shining keys and key chains, Neal dug out his lanyard which had his licence attached to it on a silver clip. I shook my head to clear away the questions that entered my brain once seeing the keys and pulled out my licence. Mr. Jacques carefully studied the two pictures, Neal's face on the card was smiling happily, while mine looked more like a mug shot. The banker then looked down at the information about us and handed our licences' back to us. "So, is everything all set?" Neal asked curiously, on the edge of his seat.

"Yes, yes. Let me make out your checks."Mr. Jacques huffed, digging out his favorite fountain pen and faded blue checkbook. Within minutes, Neal and I had our money, each of us grinning as we walked out of the bank. I knew taking _all_ of my money out of both my bank accounts wasn't a good idea, since I promised Mary Margaret and David I would go college later on in life, but I no intentions for going to college once my kid was old enough for daycare. I just needed my child to be happy, Neal to be with me, and a paying job for me to feel complete.

* * *

At around five o'clock, when the sun dipped behind the swaying green trees, Neal and I found ourselves sprawled out on the couch, almost asleep if not for Mary Margaret's heels clicking on the floor. She sat in the arm chair across from us and demanded, "How was the ultrasound? Is the baby okay?" Our eyes flew open, and I vaguely remembered telling her that I was supposed to go to the doctor's today.

Neal squinted his eyes and cleared his throat, while I groaned and snuggled up next to Neal again. His faint smell of cheap cologne mixed with lavender detergent wafted up my nose. The day's events tired me out, with more to come tonight, so I nudged Neal, making him tell the news to Mary Margaret. "The baby's doing great." Neal said, bringing me closer to his body. "But it seems as if the mother's tired, so do you mind if I bring her to her room? I can show you the ultrasound pictures after."

"Of course. You know where her room is, I'm guessing." Mary Margaret replied, pointing to the stairs. Neal lifted me up in his arms and walked over to the metal staircase, a smile forming on my mother's lips as I moved around in Neal's arms. When we got upstairs, my boyfriend slowly took off my leather jacket and placed me on my bed, spreading a blanket over my body. With a kiss on my forehead, Neal left the bedroom and returned back downstairs.

Taking out the laurel picture, Neal handed it to Mary Margaret. "That right there is your grandchild," He said, pointing out the tiny blob surrounded by the black outline.

Mary Margaret squealed and touched the little blob as if it was really there and alive. "Oh! This is so exciting!" She gushed, looking at Neal and then down at the picture with a immense smile. "I'm going to be a grandparent!" Her giddy attitude rang throughout the apartment, almost waking me up, and she calmed herself down, giving Neal a congratulatory hug. Once taking a deep breath, she asked, "And how was Emma at the doctor's? She's not very fond of it, if you haven't noticed."

"She was good, but she did break down crying after perceiving her baby. It's nothing to worry about, though, I assume everyone's like that when they see their kid for the first time." Neal explained, leaning back against the couch and closing his eyes for a few minutes. "And I'm not sure if Emma told you, but Kat and Josh are coming over tonight. I hope you don't mind."

Mary Margaret smiled and got up from the armchair. "No, Emma didn't tell me. That's very much like her; she never tells me anything. But, anyways, yes, of course Kat and Josh can come over." Neal gave a grateful nod and stood up to leave. "Why don't you stay here until they come? You look wiped out and seeing as how you almost fell asleep on the Godforstaking couch, you couldn't possibly drive home half asleep."

"Thanks, Mary Margaret." Neal smiled, sitting back down on the couch and stretching his legs out. "Your pretty amazing, if you haven't noticed that yet." My mother shrugged, blushing as she left the room.

* * *

Two and a half hours later, Kat, Josh, Neal and I were in my room, chugging down pizza and a gallon of water. Between the four of us, my stomach being the most hungry, we ate three out of the four pizza's David order for us. And once our stomachs were content and satisfied, I spoke up giving a small kick in Neal's shins. "So, guys," I started, making two heads turn in my direction. "Neal and I wanted to announce something to you."

Giving Neal 'The Look', the look of puppy dog eyes staring intently at him, Neal finished for me. "We're having a kid." Kat blinked once, the only movement out of her for several minutes, while Josh choked on the crust of his pizza. Both of our friends stared at us in astonishment and wonderment, their minds still taking apart the information we just told them about.

"_A baby?_" Josh repeated finally, looking at me.

I nodded, "A baby, and we want you two to be the Godparents."

Kat, her eyes growing teary crawled over the three boxes of pizza and hugged me tightly. "Why us?" She asked. "Not that I'm upset or anything."

Neal, never getting a reason why I wanted Kat and Josh to be the Godparents when I told him that little bit of information eariler, motioned for me to explain. "Kat, you accepted me for who I was at the time I met you- a foster kid, and didn't judge me for anything. You were the first person that I ever considered my best friend and even protected me when I needed it. You made me try new things when I never wanted to, like wearing a damn dress, but putting that aside, I wouldn't want anyone else to by the Godmother for my kid." Kat sobbed uncontrollably, squeezing me tightly as she hugged me. "And Josh, you were the one that always came up with the greatest adventures. When I needed to talk to someone, you were there, always willing to help me through something. Your like a brother to me, and if anyone had to be a Godfather, it'll be, hands down, you."

"Thanks, Emma. Your the best." Josh said with a smile, giving me a quick hug unlike Kat and her tight, long hug.

"But, hey," I looked from Kat to Josh, giving them each a prolonged stare. "I don't want to be treated any different now that I'm pregnant, okay? I already get enough of that from Neal." My boyfriend gave me a guilty smile and kissed my lips.

Josh and Kat nodded and said in unison, "Of course. We'll treat you exactly the same as we would if you weren't giving birth to a kid."

And it turns out, they were lying.

* * *

_Wow! This chapter was long... What'd you think? _


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